This invention relates to a convertible seat which can convert from a seat configuration wherein it forms a sofa, chair, or other furniture piece that supports the back of a seated person, to a bed or other furniture piece that utilizes the former seat back to support the upper half of a reclined person.
Convertible seats have utilized a variety of mechanisms to hold the seat back and bottom in either the seat or bed configuration, and to enable the conversion between these configurations. However, the simplest of those mechanisms have required the person manipulating the mechanism to support some of the weight of the device during the conversion, so that the mechanism was useful only for lightweight convertible seats. Other mechanisms have been provided for heavier convertible seats, such as those convertible between a sofa and a double or wider bed or for sturdy and well upholstered chairs, but these mechanisms have been relatively complex so that they not only involved considerable cost but were subject to malfunction. A mechanism for a convertible seat that was of simple design and yet which enabled support of the seat back and bottom during conversion between a sofa and bed configuration or the like, would enable lower cost construction, more reliable service, and easier operation and repair.